General Grant’s “Write Hand Man”
Saturday, May 28
(online virtual program)
During the months General Grant struggled to compose his memoirs, a stenographer named Noble Dawson became his indispensable aide and friend. Dawson was a quick and accurate stenographer and typist, but there’s more to his story than his devoted assistance to the ex- president. During the Civil War, Dawson served in the 19th Iowa and was captured by the rebels, finding himself imprisoned at Camp Ford, Texas, the Confederates’ largest POW camp west of the Mississippi. Noble Dawson is almost overlooked by history. Camp Ford is virtually forgotten. Grant Cottage tour guide Steve Trimm will present a virtual program about the man, the prison camp, and why both ought to be remembered.
Noble E. Dawson photo courtesy of Marjorie Orr Klein
Camp Ford POWs - Noble Dawson's 19th Iowa Regiment after their captivity at Camp Ford. Dawson taught himself shorthand while a POW but later escaped.
